Empowerment is a management technique where authority and decision-making power are put in the hands of front-line employees. The idea is to enable sales and service associates to make critical decisions and to resolve customer issues on the spot, as opposed to turning them over to managers. Along with aiding service performance, empowerment has a human resources purpose of motivating employees through increased responsibility and meaningful work.

Creativity

If your company has a culture of employee empowerment, it typically shows in the creative production and flexibility your employees demonstrate. Employees who have the freedom to make decisions and to interpret projects and tasks in their own way often come up with more "out of the box" ideas and work. This is especially beneficial if you need people who can think on their feet and come up with creative solutions to challenging problems.

Innovative Thinking

While Robert Simmons addressed common concerns of giving employees creative flexibility in a 1995 "Harvard Business Review" article, he did note that it improves the ability of employees to come up with better ways to deal with dynamic customer problems. When effectively managed, empowering employees to think freely and express new ideas can lead to breakthrough sales and service systems and processes. Open communication of new ideas is one of the more overt signs of innovative thinking.

Little Management Oversight

Empowered employees are less likely to be closely watched and directed by managers. While their supervisors do delegate tasks and offer direction, employees normally operate independently, make decisions and take action with little to no regular contact with managers. This frees managers to train and coach new employees and to deal with other higher-level decisions. It also helps employees feel trusted and responsible to get the job done in the most effective way.

Openness

In an organization that truly empowers employees, a culture of openness and communication is prevalent. Top management shares important elements of strategy, finances, performance and other critical matters with employees. This helps them feel more involved in the success of the company and increases the sense of ownership within employee ranks. Strong interaction across employee functions and between supervisors and their employees are visible signals of openness.

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About the Author

Neil Kokemuller has been an active business, finance and education writer and content media website developer since 2007. He has been a college marketing professor since 2004. Kokemuller has additional professional experience in marketing, retail and small business. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Iowa State University.